Spacing or justifying device for type-bar or matrix machines.



No. 657,039. Patented All9- 28., I900.

R. H. ST. JOHN.

SPAGING 0R JUSTIFYING DEVICE FOR TYPE BAR- 0R MATRIX MACHINES.

(Application file'd July 30, 1896.) (N 0 M 0 [ha I INVENTUE. W (EfmQEWJQ 4% Z. $19M, )W

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ROSYVELL H. ST. JOHN, OF CLEVELAND,Ol-IIO, ASSIGNOR TO JOSEPH J. LITTLE,EDWARD D. APPLETON, AND HOMER EATON, TRUSTEES, OF

NEW? YORK, N Y.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 657,039, dated August28, 1900.

Application filed July 30, 1896. Serial No- 601,051. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, RoswELL H. ST. JOHN, a citizen of the United States,residing at Cleveland, in the county of Cuyahoga and State of Ohio, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Spacing or JustifyingDevices for Type-Bar or Matrix Machines; and I do hereby declare thatthe following is a full, clear, and exact description of the invention,which will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains tomake and use the same.

My invention has reference to spacing or justifying devices for type-baror matrix machines and usually known as spaces or space-bars; and theinvention consists in the construction and combination of parts,substantially as shown and described, and particularly pointed out inthe claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of myimproved spacer closed; and Fig. 2 is an enlarged edge elevationthereof, showing the parts the same as in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is aperspective view of the spacer shown in Fig. 1 open, and Fig. at is anenlarged sectional edge elevation corresponding to Fig. 2 and also openor distended as in use. Fig. 5 is a perspective detail of one of thespreading-plates or toggle-links, so called.

The device shown here is composed, primarily, of two members A and B.The member A is in this instance the main or supporting member,constructed at its top to carry the device from place to place, and B isthe operating member proper. These members have a sliding relation toeach other, a short flush rivet 5 working in a slot in part Anear itstop and a similar rivet 6 working in aslot in part B near its bottom,said rivets or their equivalents serving in both cases to keep parts Aand B closely united. Said parts have each a heavy or thick half and alight or thin spring half, indicated by a and a, respectively, in partA, and b and b, respectively, in part B, terminating in part A in ashoulder a and in part B in a shoulder 5 These shoulders a and b arediagonally opposite one another, and below and above said shoulders,respectively, are vertical slots (i and 5 through the thin portions ofpartsAand B. Between said parts at this point are arranged a series oftwo or more spreaders, preferably called toggle plates or links 0 andshown singly and enlarged in Fig. 5. These plates are designed to bevery thin, so that several may be placed together, as shown, and haveeach two tongues 8, adapted to occupy and to work in the slots a and bThese tongues are no deeper than the thin portions of the spacer inwhich they engage, so that in no case will they extend beyond thesurface thereof, but are designed to remain substantially flush withsaid surface.

The operation is obvious from the description and drawings. Thus supposea wedge or other lifting medium to be placed under the end 4 of part Bwhen the part A is held against upward movement. In such case the partswould spread from the relation in Fig. 2 to the relation in Fig. 4 ormore or less nearly to that relation as more or less room were found inthe assembled matrices for the spacers to fill. These spacers of coursecome between the words which are represented by the matrices, as well asat the ends of the lines, as they are needed to take up idle space, andhence in some lines all the spacers might require a wide expansion andin others a very slight or little expansion. This spacer is adapted towork equally well in either extreme as well as in all intermediatepositions. The relation of the plates 0 to their slots and the shouldersat either side, furthermore, is such that they cannot work out of place,and they are as truly confined as if their ends were mechanicallyconnected by pivots or the like to the parts A and B.

WVhen the spacers are released in the ma chine, the weight of part Bwill immediately drop by gravity to position, as seen in Figs. 1 and 2,and the spacer willbe closed. Any suitable means for suspending andcarrying the spacer may be employed.

The part A is held from upward movement by the mechanism which engagesthe matrices and has a notch in its edge wherein engage ment is made. Inpractice the corresponding notch in part B is made large enough toaccommodate itself to such movement as it may require in thisconnection, which at best is not much.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The spacer consisting of two loosely-connected sections and a springportion on each, at opposite sides and ends respectively, and loosespreaders intermediate of said sections, substantially as described.

2. A spacer formed of two sections connected to slide longitudinally inrespect to each other and having each a spring portion overlapping arigid portion of the opposite section, and a spreader arranged at aninclination transversely between said sections, substantially asdescribed.

3. Acompoundspacerconsistingoftwosections slidably connected near theirends, and a plurality of spreaders loosely engaged between said sectionsat or near their middle and adapted to spread the. sections when eitherone is moved longitudinally, substan tially as described.

4. A spacer for type-bars consisting of two sections longitudinallyadjustable on each other and each section having a rigid and a springportion, and a set of spreaders engaged between the opposite adjacentends of the spring portions of said sections, substantially asdescribed.

5. A spacer for type-bar machines, consisting of two substantially-equalsections having each a rigid portion overlapped by a spring portion ofthe opposite section, a recess between the adjacent ends of the rigidportions, and a loose spreader engaged in said recess, substantially asdescribed.

6. A spacer for type-bar machines formed in two sections longitudinally,and a set of loose spreaders between said sections having projections onopposite edges engaged in said sections, substantially as described.

Witness myhand'to the foregoing specification on this 23d day of March,1896.

ROSWELL I-I. ST. JOHN. lVitnesses:

II. T. FISHER, RICHARD B. MosER.

